A Special Dinner
by Aethra Caelis
Summary: Allelujah makes dinner for Marie -- that got her thinking of... things... not usually done on the dining table.


_Disclaimer: Gundam 00 characters, names and related indicia © Sunrise, Bandai._

_Written for **MarvelGirl09** with a prompt of Allelujah cooking something for Marie, in conjunction with her theme of "Senses."  
_

**A Special Dinner  
**_**a Gundam 00 fanfic by Cielo  
**_

Marie sat cross-legged on a large couch, a book in hand. Words and letters swam senselessly in front of her eyes as curiosity and anticipation gnawed at her mind.

_Earlier that day..._

She had just finished doing some shopping and struggled with her keys to open the door to the quaint house she shared with Allelujah. A familiar tingling in her mind signaled his presence and she turned around, seeing him get off the bike he used to go to work. He grabbed a bag of groceries along with his bag and sauntered towards her.

"You're early today," Marie greeted the newcomer with a peck on the lips. He replied with a beaming smile as he opened the door for her. "You just relax, Marie, I'll be making dinner tonight."

"Oh? Is my cooking that bad?" She asked in good humor, as they helped each other out of their jackets. He lead her to the couch and sat her down, "No, of course not! It's just that I haven't had the chance to experiment in the kitchen, and I just found a bunch of recipes that I think you'll quite enjoy."

Seeing a childlike excitement in his mismatched eyes was enough to convince her to sit still...

... but that did not prevent her from trying to steal a peek in the kitchen. Only a Allelujah's watchful golden eye stopped her from completely spoiling the surprise.

~*~*~*~

Marie looked up from her "reading," drawn by the aroma slipping into the living room. She suddenly felt like those cartoon characters where their noses were cajoled by aromatic fumes, beckoned to sit at the dining table. She smelled something salty, sweet, with a layer of pleasantly sour... and... something... that made her think of... _things_... not usually done on the dining table.

The smell was so enticing that she hopped off the couch, leaving her book and headed towards the kitchen. She stopped short as Allelujah stepped out, "Oh! You're just on time! Can you set the table? Dinner will be served real soon."

Marie suddenly felt her face grow hot -- the distinct aroma wafted from the kitchen, and seemed to have clung onto Allelujah, and hit her olfactory nerves that sent a tingle up her skin. "Ah... Allelujah... can you change your shirt before you come to dinner?"

"Don't worry, I will -- man, those spices are potent!" The heterochromic man popped back inside the kitchen, as she made her way to the dining room. Shaking off her small bout of unease, she laid out a delicate cream tablecloth and took out some of the fine china, silverware and glasses.

Just as she was finishing up, Allelujah came in with two dishes in hand, and set them on the table, "I think this calls for white zinfandel..." Marie hopped at the cue and went to fetch a corkscrew and a bottle from the fridge. It was amusing to see the petite woman uncork a wine bottle with ease, and she poured the crystalline contents into the glasses.

Allelujah slyly scrutinized her expression as he took a sip of the zinfandel -- she had a soft smile on her face as she inhaled the very enticing fragrance of the dishes served. He then proceeded to serve the appetizers. "Allelujah... are those figs?"

She was answered with a nod, "Lightly grilled with honey -- careful, they're still a little hot." Allelujah placed two halves in her plate -- the tear drop shaped fruits had a glazed outer layer, cradling the bewitchingly red pulp. She looked up, "Alle --" and stopped short as the image of her lover struck a chord in her mind: his long fingers turned the fig half inside-out, unveiling the sweetly glazed fruit. His head slightly lowered, he neared his lips to the warm and moist pome...

Marie suddenly found herself spacing out, thinking of a different time where he had the same... posture, except that she was seeing it from a different angle. She felt her legs tense as she sucked on the tip of her spoon...

"I think it's ok now, Marie," Allelujah looked up from his fig, and took a double take at seeing an all too familiar flush rise in Marie's cheeks -- and he fought a smirk tugging at the right side of his face. He cleared his throat to which Marie jerked her head up, "Ah, yes, i-it's should be cool by now..."

Shaking off the images in her mind, she proceeded to scoop out the red pulp and took a taste -- the woody taste of the honey complimented the sugary-sourness of the fig, "This is great, Allelujah!" She also found the zinfandel setting off a harmonious sweetness to the dish -- she quickly finished her share.

"We have more figs for tomorrow. But for now, onto the main course," he pulled a bowl of pasta and proceeded to serve, "Pasta with oysters and tasso, with garlic and basil."

"Oysters? I never thought they could be served with pasta," Marie mused. She had eaten oysters before, and most definitely pasta. Twirling the angel hair around her fork and sampling it, her palette was met with an unusually pleasant treat -- the strong flavors of tasso and oysters, sweetly mingled with the white sauce, while the spices and herbs set off the main ingredients agreeably.

"What do you think?" Marie took a sip of her wine and beamed, "It's wonderful! I think I'll have seconds." Marie never realized how hungry she was until she found herself holding back lest she wolf down the whole plate in record time. But the mix somehow encouraged her to chew slowly and to savor every single flavor she could detect in a mouthful. It was almost as if every bite released a different kind of flavor -- and one where the oyster was particularly distinct, made her recall a marked memory...

... of moist fingers tracing her lips, followed by a heated kiss -- its warmth spreading from her neck, down to her toes, sparks of passion spreading through every nerve...

She abruptly downed her glass of zinfandel which prompted a surprised Allelujah to refill it, "Easy with the alcohol there..." and was it just her, but was his voice slightly lower? Must be the wine, she thought. Damn good wine it was.

For dessert, which they decided to eat in the living room while watching TV -- it was suddenly getting hot in the dining room for some reason -- was a bowl of black chocolate coated coffee beans; something to tone down the pasta.

... But the audio visual stimuli went unnoticed, while a coffee bean was being absentmindedly nibbled on as Marie welcomed far more entertaining images in her mind -- until Allelujah's voice cut through her thoughts.

_You've been quite distracted during dinner time, Marie._

She looked up and she was surprised by a lingering kiss, his fingers tracing her jawline, resting below her chin.

_I think I should let you make dinner more often then._

Marie leaned forward so as to make him lean against the sofa's armrest, her hand slipping under his collar to touch more of his heated skin.

_I don't know what you've put in the food tonight Allelujah, but I'm having __**you**__ for dessert_.

-- END --

Notes:

_I think you guys can already guess what kind of dishes Allelujah served Marie. If you don't, just try typing in oysters, garlic, wine, figs, honey, and basil in one line in search engines – tell me what you find. ;)_

_Had a lot of fun writing this one, as I am fond of cooking myself. I always look forward to Sundays when I practically own the family kitchen and there's no one to bother me with my experiments. _^_^


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